


Can You Warm up my Soul?

by JungTaco



Series: The Magic in Your Soul [3]
Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Fantasy, M/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-11
Updated: 2016-05-11
Packaged: 2018-06-07 20:33:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,892
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6822982
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JungTaco/pseuds/JungTaco
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Being lonely was probably his destiny. So many people passed through his life, but everyone stayed for a short time. Love was fragile, it always died quickly, but it still happened every time. Its memory would remain in his heart though, and each memory from each love left scars after scars.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Can You Warm up my Soul?

Being lonely was probably his destiny. So many people passed through his life, but everyone stayed for a short time. Love was fragile, it always died quickly, but it still happened every time. Its memory would remain in his heart though, and each memory from each love left scars after scars.

Lay would fall in love very easily, with almost anyone who he encountered, maybe because of his loneliness. He got tired of being alone. Every day he would stay in that place he couldn't leave, listening to the murmur of the water falling and to the wind caressing the leaves and his dark brown hair.

Lay wasn't human. But his loved once were. He was born to guard the spring which had that oh-so-sweet water, tastier than any other on this planet. Him and that spring were born with one purpose: to keep humans away from the Forest, the home of so many creatures.

Son of the Moon and the Forest, Lay was temptation itself. Anything resembling love from someone else was nothing more than pure obsession, which became sicker and stronger every day. The concept of love was not supposed to be known by him, but he knew it too well unfortunately. It appeared every time in the form of a gentle, young girl, a charming boy, a wise, tall man... it had many forms. However, it always ended the same.

 

It was a dark night and the sight of the Moon was blocked by thick clouds and a cool wind was blowing. He kept his eyes closed, feeling the cold water sliding on his skin and listening to the sound of it reaching the shiny surface. Endless thoughts were wandering through his mind about what he could do if he weren't there, if he hadn't had that obligation. He wished he had been human. He sighed knowing that all those thoughts were all in vain. His eyes still shut, he heard something move in the forest. He then felt it was a human. It was _her_. His love at that time. He opened his eyes slowly and looked in the direction she was coming from. What was she doing there? She wasn't supposed to be there at that time. _She_ could see them.

Lay got out from under the small waterfall that was forming there and stepped on land at the time she appeared in front of him. The young, black-haired girl had a wide smile on her expression, but Lay just frowned.

"What's wrong?" She asked, the smile diminishing a bit when she saw his serious face.

"What are you doing here?" His tone was warm compared to how the girl expected it to be, judging by his mien.

"But... _She_ can't see us... There are clouds covering the Moon."

"That's stupid... Clouds don't stay in a single place, you know that."

"But I wanted to see you so bad!" she retorted looking into his eyes.

"I know... Do you think I don't want to see you? I do, but Mother doesn't want that. That's why we settled to meet at the sunset and sunrise, don't you remember?" The guardian of the spring was barely whispering now, because he didn't want to be found out. His dear mother up there in the sky, the Moon loved him too much to let him be hurt again. His heart had been broken too many times. That's why she didn't want humans near him anymore so she prohibited him to come in contact with them again. He had to do that, because otherwise he couldn't keep them away from the Forest. By attracting them in his trap, he would scare the others away. At least that's what it was supposed to happen. But instead, they kept coming, because humans are brave, are curious, are stupid maybe. They are stupid for going straight into Lay's trap. But he didn't want it either. They just died... whereas he... he was still alive. The Moon loved her dear son so much that she didn't care about what he was meant to be. Instead, she decided to guard him. Lay wasn't supposed to feel love in the first place, but it couldn't be helped. His heart was fragile and wanted to protect everyone, when it was actually bad for them. He was cursed. He couldn't be loved by _someone_.

"I'm sorry... But I _love_ you too much." That's what she said, hurrying to embrace him. Then she caught his lips in a kiss, which she seemed to have been waiting for.

Lay closed his eyes while a bitter sensation was invading his heart. He tried to pull her away from him gently, but the girl was clinging to him with all her might. He broke the kiss apart and averted his eyes from her, biting his lower lip and shaking his head.

"Why are you so cold towards me?" she mewled and tried to kiss him again, but he didn't let her.

"Please get away from me until it's not too late." He knew though that it was already too late.

"What do you mean, Lay? I don't want to get away from you, I-"

"You can't." He closed his eyes again and frowned. "But you have to." Lay said on a firm tone, but inside he was breaking apart. He couldn't count how many times he had said those words before. He finally pulled her away and turned his back towards her. The boy - because that's what he was after all, even if he wasn’t human - felt her arms around him when she hugged him from behind.

"Don't do this."

"Don't push me away." the girl said, beginning to cry silently. Lay sighed.

"You won't understand, but you don't love me."

"What are you saying?! Of course I do? What other proof do I have to give you?"

"No... Believe me, no one can love me. I can't explain it to you, your whole being is... infected by me." he said in a low voice, feeling disgusted at himself.

"Yes, that's right, but I don't care. I like it. I love it!"

He bit his lip harder and looked up at the sky, hoping that the clouds would continue to hide him from his mother.

"Please leave..."

"No!" Her arms encompassed his frame with a little more force, how much of it she could muster.

"I don't love you. Leave." His heart hurt even more when he forced himself to lie like that.

"You're lying."

"I'm not lying."

She started to cry more bitterly.

She left,  but the next day she came back. She called his name, but he remained silent, hidden from her sight, in the small cave craved in the cold rock behind the waterfall. She just cried again and again, calling his name. She continued to return to that place daily for a few days, but she received no response.

It was painful, but he left her with no choice. She missed him to death. Literally. Not getting enough of her lover, her obsession... she died. That happened to everyone, and after each one disappeared, Lay remained lonely again.

 

Lay had just woken up from his slumber. It was a quite day as always, cold wind blowing slightly. It was fall and all was golden, the whole place basking in the light of the setting sun. He stayed there, behind the stream of water falling rapidly, looking through the liquid curtain at the unclear image beyond it. He heard someone approaching and soon he also heard some voices. After a few seconds, three boys appeared near the clean water, talking loudly. Lay watched them from afar, not moving from his place. He couldn’t see them well, but he didn’t really want to either. Still, he was curious, so he continued to look in their direction.

“Are you sure we’ll find those here, Jongin?” one of them asked.

“They must be here… those kind of plants.” The one named Jongin answered as he squatted near the water. Thirsty as he was, he took some of the liquid to his mouth, helping himself with his hands. Lay watched him closely as he took a sip and stopped abruptly when he heard one of the other boys speak.

“Here.” he said, pointing to something on the ground, a plant maybe, judging by what they were talking about a few moments ago.

The fact that they were searching for plants, which was by itself something strange to him, surprised the hidden boy less than the fact that Jongin seemed unaffected by the water. When Jongin came to see what his friend was showing him, Lay felt it again, just looking at him. Why did it happen so easily? Moreover, this time it seemed to be quicker than any other.

He closed his eyes, hoping that he wouldn’t get to see it again, not wanting this new love to eat at his heart how the others had done. To his relief, the boy left immediately after getting what they were in that place for.

Lay wanted to forget those few minutes in that day in which he saw Jongin.

***

The boy could eventually get his mind off the fresh memory of the visitor from the previous day. The sun was setting once again, following its every-day routine, not wasting a minute. Like the day before, Lay was in the same place, his back against the cold, hard rock, but he wasn’t feeling uncomfortable. He heard some movement through the forest again. Who could it be? He focused his attention on the place where someone could appear and a person indeed showed himself.

Lay’s eyes widened a little and saddened at the same time. He wanted to get rid of his heart if he could… He hated it. Especially this time around. He sighed and continued to watch Jongin just standing there, staring at his reflection in the water. As much as he wanted him to leave, the hidden boy wanted the other to come closer so he could see him better; his features, his gestures, his eyes…

Jongin lifted his look from the mirror of the spring, golden light reflecting in his dark brown eyes. _Why is he here again?_ He didn’t seem to be looking for anything, but he was just there… looking around. His expression was soft and peaceful. Jongin closed his eyes for a few moments, taking a deep breath, as if he were inhaling the sweet, golden light which was painting everything in that color.

Lay wanted to get out of his little hiding place, but… Jongin wasn’t affected by the water, so he shouldn’t make his appearance, because he would bait him like he did with the others. It was better for both, or so he thought.

“Will you come here again tomorrow?” Lay was surprised by his own voice, which he wasn’t able to control. Immediately after he said those words out loud, he covered his mouth with his hand, uselessly hoping that the other boy hadn’t heard it; Jongin focused his attention on the place where he thought the question was coming from, his eyes wide and curious. He couldn’t make out though the exact spot where the fair-skinned boy was.

“Wh-Who’s that?” he asked, trying to figure out who had just spoken. No answer was given. “I think… I’ll come tomorrow too.” Jongin finally answered the first question. “If that’s the only way for you to show your face.” He chuckled. “I’m leaving now though. See you!” He said, smiling.

“No… Don’t come…” he whispered, unable to say it out loud for Jongin to hear.

***

The next day, he came again, at the same time. Like before, he was very relaxed, only this time he was curious and Lay knew the cause. He decided not to come out of there, to continue to hide from him, even though he wanted to approach Jongin. He had the urge to show himself from his little cave, but he managed to control it. Lay stayed there in silence for a while, just looking at the other boy.

“Are you there?” Jongin suddenly asked, and the fair-skinned boy was startled by his deep voice.

“I-I’m here.” he answered quietly, but loud enough to be heard. He was hesitating, torn apart between wanting to talk to him and wanting to remain silent, away from his life. He knew for sure that the second option was the best one, but something didn’t let him follow it.

Jongin smiled when he heard the answer. “Then show yourself. I want to see you.”

_What am I doing?_ Lay asked himself and shook his head.

“N-No… Just go home… and don’t come here again… please…”

“But… yesterday you wanted me to come.” Jongin seemed confused by the sudden change of mind of his unknown interlocutor. His smile reappeared in no time though. “I don’t know why you seem to be afraid, but I’ll still come.” His smile got wider. “I don’t know who you are either, but I want to get to know you.” He wanted to know him because Lay peeked his interest only with his soft voice. _Maybe he’s just shy._

Lay just bit his lip, not saying anything more, thinking that Jongin was already becoming like all the others. He saw him ward off after a while, relieved that he was gone and hoping he wouldn’t return.

Like every night, he got out from his little hideout, in the darkness that wrapped the whole forest. He didn’t sleep at that time, he only slept during the day. Because the night was mystery, was secretive… exactly like him.

The entire night, the boy with a deep voice didn’t leave his head. Not having anything to distract him, he couldn’t help but remember him every two seconds, even though he was struggling to forget. When the sun was ready to rise, he went back to his cave, ready for that day’s rest. He didn’t go right to sleep though, because he couldn’t.

The next second, the grass rustling under someone’s feet could be heard again. Lay flinched and his eyes widened in expectation and fear at the same time. Did he come again? Indeed, it was him, once more.

_Why did he come already?_

Jongin just took a sit near the spring, without saying a word for a few minutes, while Lay was just watching him silently.

“Are you here now?” the boy eventually asked.

“I’m here…” the other said in a soft tone. Jongin grinned and continued:

“I’m gonna sit here until you come out then.”

“I won’t come out.”

“Why?” the other boy whined as the smile left his face in a jiffy.

“Just because.”

Jongin pouted and looked in the direction of the voice, trying, once more, to see where Lay was hiding. He should have been able to find out if he looked a little more closely, right? He stood up, squinting his eyes. “Then I’m gonna bring you out myself.” he said more to himself than to his mysterious interlocutor. Then he noticed that behind the small waterfall there was something… a hole, resembling a cave, but smaller. “Could you be there?” he whispered. After that, he slowly stepped into the cold water, which almost reached his knees. “Aish, you make me do this thing…” he whined again, but then chuckled. “Why am I doing this for someone I don’t know I wonder… You should be flattered.”

When he saw that Jongin was coming towards him, Lay went further inside his hideout. It was useless though, he would still be able to see him. In a few seconds, he was in front of him, the only thing separating them being the thin stream of the translucent liquid.

“Ah, I can see you!” Jongin chuckled. “Well, not really well, but…” He tried to find an angle in which he could see through the narrow spaces the water couldn’t reach because of the way it was trickling off the rock. What he could see was the fact that his skin was white… but not that white we attribute to normal people’s skin, but the same white the snow has. A small silence fell, but it was broken in a few other moments “So… Will you come out now or will you make me get even wetter?” Now Jongin became curious.

Lay was just looking at him, hoping that if he didn’t do anything, Jongin would go away. But he was insistent. The fair-skinned boy advanced a little on the cold rock after seeing that hiding was useless… or that he couldn’t do it anymore. He was curious as well. His face was now right in front of Jongin’s, but they could see only some vague traces of their real features.

Lay’s arm slowly advanced through the curtain of water, and Jongin was just looking at it, mesmerized by the fact that somebody’s skin could be of that color. It slowly went up, to his cheek, touching it lightly. The eyes of the boy outside widened and he flinched because the hand was so cold. He hesitantly placed his own hand on top of Lay’s. Then saw then how his upper body emerged through the water, beginning with his head. Jongin’s lips parted, but he was unable to say anything at that time as the other’s mild look pierced through his soul. He was beautiful.

His dark brown hair contrasted harmoniously with his fair skin. His eyes were like dark coffee, his nose almost perfectly straight and his pinkish lips were shaped elegantly. He almost looked like a statue, a fine piece of art actually. He even felt like one. The only thing that made Jongin think he’s actually human was his lovable eyes, looking straight into his.

“W-What’s your name?” Jongin eventually managed to mutter.

“Lay.” he simply answered. “And you’re Jongin, right?” Lay asked, taking his hand off the other’s cheek. “Oh, sorry… I must be… cold.”

Jongin nodded. “Yes, that’s my name. Oh, don’t worry about it.” A slight smile made his way to his face. “It’s actually pretty refreshing… like this water in which you made me stay.” He laughed lightly, his nose scrunching, making Lay think that he looks cute. Jongin was a 18-year-old boy, taller than Lay, his skin a little dark – but it looked a lot darker now, when he was standing right on front of Lay – plump lips and brown eyes. His dark hair was slightly disheveled by the wind blowing and his smile was charming – that’s what the other boy was thinking.  

“Sorry. I’ll come out.”

Jongin nodded and continued: “But why are you staying there?” He wanted to say more, but he stopped when Lay came out of there. Indeed, he was a moving statue. The taller boy looked at his bare body, unable to say anything and he wondered why, because it was not the first time he had seen someone naked, especially a boy. But he was just too beautiful, compared to all the others. He almost thought that he was made of porcelain because of the color of his skin. Somehow, Jongin felt that he was too far away and wanted to come closer. He made a small step forward, then he realized he was actually too close to him, so he withdrew slightly. His look moved to Lay’s eyes, now unable to move his attention anywhere else; he was captivating. A sad smile loomed on the fair-skinned boy’s expression at that moment, while looking into the other’s eyes.

“Because I… just like this place.” He shrugged, lying. He actually had no choice; he was dependent of that place and he didn’t know what would happen if he left it. He would probably die and that would be fine for him, but he didn’t want to hurt his mother or to let her down like that.

“I see…” The muscles of Jongin’s face somehow relaxed and his smile came back as he partially came back to himself from the dizziness caused by Lay – because he didn’t really know how he could call that sensation. “And you like to… be free I guess.” He added, glancing at his nakedness, and the other boy didn’t know how he could respond.

_Something is strange… different._ Lay thought, because indeed, it was something else. Nothing much seemed to have changed within Jongin. The shorter’s effect on him wasn’t so strong. _Why?_ A peck of hope appeared in his soul, but he was afraid to accept it. He shook his head a little to get rid of it. _No, it can’t be. That’s not possible for me._ He thought as he looked down at his reflection.

“What’s wrong?” the taller asked concerned.

“Nothing.” _Actually a lot._

“Fine then…” he said, not completely convinced. “Can we… Get out of the water now? I don’t know about you, but now my whole body feels cold.” He laughed softly.

“Yes, yes, of course.” Lay said, motioning him to get out of the spring as he followed him out.

_Weird guy…_ Jongin thought and smiled to himself. _But being normal isn’t any fun._

“How often do you come here?” the dark-skinned boy asked, and the other answered after a pause:

“Pretty often.” he smiled, feeling a little more comfortable now.

“I can see that.” Jongin laughed. “You’re here every time I come. Oh, aren’t you cold? I don’t know how you can cope with this temperature like that…” Since it was fall, it wasn’t really warm there. Jongin was wearing a T-shirt and a jacket over it and he thought he would do a kind act for Lay’s sake. “Here.” he said as he took off his jacket and put it on the other’s shoulders.

Lay watched him, eyes widening. No one had done that before. All the people before could see was him and their own lust, so anything to cover that body which they loved so much was not welcomed.

“T-Thanks. But I’m fine, really. You seem like you need it more.”

Jongin shook his head. “No, no, you’re the one naked after all.”

Lay accepted it, even though he really didn’t need any clothes.

“I’m Lay by the way.” he said, smiling and looking at the taller, who had taken a seat on the soft grass.

“Eh?” He looked up at him. “I know that, you’ve told me your name a minute ago.” He laughed again.

“Ah… That’s right, sorry.” He laughed embarrassed, scratching the back of his neck as he sit down beside the other boy.

“You don’t seem very comfortable around me, do you? Ah, sorry, I won’t look at you anymore if that’s embarrassing for you, since you’re… naked after all.”

“What? No… No, that’s ok, I’m not embarrassed. That’s not why I’m not comfortable…”

“Then what is it? Have I done something maybe?... Or… Of course, we don’t even know each other and I came to you saying that I want to get to know you; that’s pretty strange, right?” He chuckled nervously. “But you’re not the one to say that… Ah, what am I saying?.... Sorry, I’m just rambling, I don’t know what’s wrong with me.” Jongin spoke so fast that Lay could barely understand what he was talking about, but that was kind of funny, and he started to laugh, looking at the nervous boy next to him. No one had been nervous near him before… intrigued, curious, obsessed… but not nervous. A lot of things were new about Jongin. Somehow Lay wasn’t afraid, like before, that it would end up like it did with the others.

Jongin watched him laugh and smiled contently. His laugh was lovely.

“No, you haven’t done anything wrong, don’t worry.” he said after he finished laughing, his warm eye smile visible.

Suddenly, Lay remembered that he was tired. The day was almost there and he needed to sleep, but he didn’t want to tell Jongin to go away.

“Since when are you here though?” the dark-skinned boy asked. “Because you seem to be here since forever… it’s almost like you’re part of this place.” he continued while looking around him.

“Well… I’ve just reached here… a few minutes before you came.” _Sorry for lying to you._

“I see. So you’ve woken up early just to come here? Just like me, huh?” He chuckled.

“But why did you come so early? The other days you just came at the sunset… I mean… That’s when I saw you…” Lay tried to remedy his mistake.

“I just thought you would be here… and I couldn’t sleep, so I came here because I had nothing better to do…. But I have to leave for school soon.”

“I see.”

“Hey, how old are you?” Jongin asked curiously.

“I’m… pretty old actually.” Lay laughed, not knowing what else to say.

 “Really? You don’t seem old at all. And I bet you won’t tell me, right?”

The other shook his head, smiling teasingly.

“Aish… I’ll find out after all.” Jongin said as he took his phone out of his jeans’ pocket to check the time. “I have to go now.” He said, turning to look at the fair-skinned boy and he was startled a little, because he was very close to him. The phone seemed to have caught his attention. “It’s not… the latest model of phone.” He said, playing around with it in his hand. “Do you… not have one?” He asked, seeing how curious he was.

“No…” Then he realized what he was doing and shook his head. “It’s nothing, sorry. You have to leave, right?’

“Yes.” he answered, as he stood up. Lay followed him and took off the jacket to return it to Jongin.

“It’s ok, you can keep it.” He smiled warmly. “I’ll be fine without it. You can give it to me the next time. I’ll be off now, see you.” Jongin waved at him, ready to set off.

“Will you come tonight too?”

“Yes, I’ll be here, don’t worry.” He smiled for the last time before leaving, receiving a smile back.

“I’ll be waiting.”

***

As he said, Jongin was back at the end of the day, but Lay was still sleeping then. He was still carrying his backpack, and once he reached there, he left it near the root of a tree as he was looking around, searching for his new friend. Then he thought he might be at the same place where he was the first time they saw each other.

“Aish… I’m here!” he shouted, but he received no response. “Lay!” Again, nothing. “Maybe he’s not there… I should still check. Making me come in the water again… I’ll make you pay for this.” He mumbled to himself, stepping into the water. At the same time, Lay’s eyes fluttered open and he lifted his head. His back was resting against the rock and he was hugging his knees while his head was propped against them. That’s how he always slept. He heard the sound of the water, not that of the waterfall, but one more, and he knew it was Jongin.

“Oh, you’re here.” He beamed as he got out through the curtain of liquid to greet Jongin.

“I’m here.” He gently smiled back. “Do you never get cold? What if you get sick? You’re naked _and_ wet… again.” he asked genuinely concerned. “And where is my jacket? Why aren’t you wearing it?”

“Well… Umm… It’s somewhere there.” He pointed at the shore. “I didn’t want to get it wet…” _If only I could tell you why you shouldn’t be concerned…_

“You’re really weird, you know?” Jongin said, a frown appearing on his expression, but not because of the fact that Lay was weird, because he was careless from his point of view. He indeed was actually, otherwise he wouldn’t have talked to him in the first place.

Jongin grabbed his wrist to grab him out of there and felt a sensation of cold spread throughout is body.

“Are you sure you’re… not sick or something?” Jongin asked as he searched for his jacket with his eyes, eventually finding it somewhere on the grass. He took it and placed it on Lay’s shoulders again.

“I’m not sick, you really don’t have to worry so much.”

“I’ll still worry no matter what you say. Where are your clothes? Don’t tell me you’ve come here naked, because I won’t believe you… or are you _that_ weird?”

Lay chuckled without answering and he sat down on the grass, near a tree, the tree near which Jongin’s backpack was.

“Is that yours?” the fair-skinned boy asked, pointing to it.

“It’s mine.” the other said as he sat next to him.

Lay was curious about what was inside it, but realized that he was already weird enough in Jongin’s eyes and any more suspicious behavior wouldn’t be too good.

“So how was your day?” the shorter asked after a short pause.

“Boring and tiring… Nothing really interesting to tell you about, just classes, classes and some more boring classes. But how was your day?”

“Just boring… I guess. I pretty much just slept around.”

“I see…”

Silence fell upon them after that. It was all just too different and Lay was confused. He was thinking of what would happen next? Will it be better than the previous times or would it be worse? He didn’t know how it would get worse, but who knows?

Jongin was just happy he made this new friend… a very unique one. It was weird though that he got attached to him so quickly, maybe because of that uniqueness of his.

The silence became pretty comfortable to them and they just spent the time next to each other, scarcely saying any word, but it was enough. It was nice and peaceful. It felt so good that it was weird.

“Aren’t you going to get home?” Jongin asked when it was almost completely dark.

“Yeah.” the other mumbled and nodded. “You should too. You’re parents must be waiting for you and it’s pretty late.”

“Yeah… I’ll be off then.” the dark-skinned boy stood up and grabbed his backpack from the ground, but he hesitated before actually leaving and he glanced at Lay.

“What is it?... Oh, right, the jacket. Her-“ He began to take the jacket off him, but was interrupted.

“N-No, keep it, it’s not that. Just make sure you get home fast and don’t get sick.” A kind smile appeared on his lips, and Lay’s heart would have skipped a beat if he was human. _Won’t you stay a little more?_ He wanted to ask that out loud, but he realized it was too reckless and they might get caught. That wouldn’t be any good. “See you… tomorrow?”

“Yes.” Lay replied excitedly, standing up too.

“Great. And put some clothes on. Bye!” He smiled widely and warded off through the woods, followed by his friend’s loving eyes.

***

Jongin kept coming more and more often to that lovely place and lovely friend he had made. Every day at dawn or dusk they met right there, not speaking much, but just enough to just be comfortable around each other. Soft glances that Jongin sometimes caught on him made him nervous from time to time, which was still strange. That never happened with any of his friends, but again, Lay was special. Of course, he never wore any clothes, because he never needed them, and somehow, Jongin got used to it and also to the fact that in a miraculous way, he never got sick. Lay was more than weird to him, but that trace of him turned out to be… lovely. At least in the taller boy’s eyes.

Lay was amazed by him. Not only he loved him – as a friend – but he didn’t fall in the trap that attracted everybody. He was the only one. What did he have so special that guarded him from the danger that was in Lay’s being? He didn’t know and probably never would, but that wasn’t important.

It was perfect like this. A friend was enough, even though he didn’t love Lay back how he wished. It was still perfect. He was afraid that if he wished for more it would be too greedy for him and it would turn out bad after all, so he decided their relationship should remain like that. Just a peaceful friendship basked in the golds of the sun dwelling in the horizon, between rust-colored leaves, sparks of it reflected in the ever cold water. He prayed to the gentle, warm orb to let all of this stay the same.

***

Jongin was in his bedroom, alone, his thoughts flying between school work, free time and the golden forest, but his mind decided by itself to settle upon the last of the options. Lately, he often found himself spacing out, dreaming about that place, which had become so dear to him.

He was lying in his bed. It was dark outside and only the lamp next to him lightened the room, painting it in a color resembling that of the sun setting, which he came to love even more than before. On the mattress, next to him, there were a notebook and a pencil. He suddenly remembered he had to write some observations regarding the project that leaded him to the spring where he met Lay. He was all at once grateful that his teacher offered him that chance.

Jongin decided to do what he had to do. It was hard concentrating though, as Lay’s image seemed to be haunting him. _Why am I thinking so much about him? I’m not in love with him… or… am I?_

He had never thought of this possibility before, but he was too tired to think about that; his mind was almost numb. Still, he needed to get the work done before he fell asleep, because the next day was the deadline of their botany project. It wasn’t that difficult, since he already knew what he would write about. He finished in no time and, after that, his thought flew to the fair-skinned boy again.

_Why is it now of all the times that my mind had to remember all the peculiar things about him?_ Jongin lay there, staring at the blank ceiling, beginning to wonder why Lay was like that. He almost seemed… inhuman.

“Are you actually real?” he whispered to himself. The more he thought about it the weirder it got. What was that creature? Skin as white as porcelain, a gaze in which you could easily drown… cold flesh, never getting sick, never feeling the hostilities of wind or water… the lots of secrets he seemed to be hiding… his curiosity about almost anything regarding his things… He remembered how interested he looked at his phone before and he couldn’t help but let out a small chuckle. How he seemed to always be there, no matter the hour… He couldn’t be human. “Seriously…” Jongin shook his head, laughing at himself for that silly thought. Still… it couldn’t be possible.

_“A beautiful, unimagined creature, always there, as if guarding the spring… charming, haunting, lovely… What is he?”_

He found himself scribbling those words down in his notebook with his pencil faintly.

“What am I doing?...” He quickly erased it, already hearing his classmates’ laughs at reading that.

His mind was a mess of contradictions and he didn’t know what to believe. A part of his brain wanted to believe Lay was something more than human, but the other part, the sensible one, was trying to find rational explanations. Maybe he was sick, maybe he really loved that place, maybe his health was very strong, apart from that one illness, maybe he grew up in a very strict environment, devoid of any technology that was too advanced. But that all seemed a bunch of nonsensical things his brain had strived to find.

The boy placed the notebook and the pencil on the nightstand, turned off the light and turned on his side, closing his eyes. Trying to fall asleep, those thoughts wouldn’t leave his head. He scowled, annoyed that they wouldn’t go away. The only thing certain at that moment was the fact that he loved him – he didn’t know exactly in what way, but he did.

***

The next day, Jongin woke up pretty late in the morning, because he didn’t have much sleep, so he had to hurry for school, otherwise he would have been late. As soon as classes were finished though, he almost ran to their place. When he reached there, Lay was waiting for him, his back against a tree, as naked as usual. Jongin abruptly stopped when he saw him and smiled, greeting him.

“Hey!” he said, letting his heavy backpack slide down on the grass.

“Hey.” Lay said, a soft smile plastered on his lips.

After that, Jongin’s smile diminished, thoughts mixed up in his mind again. He approached Lay slowly, curiosity visible in his eyes.

“Is there… something wrong?” the shorter boy asked.

“N-No, but…” He didn’t know how to express himself. “Lay, what… are you actually?”

The other’s eyes widened and he seemed rather scared because of the question. He himself didn’t know how to respond at this question. What was he? He was asking himself the same thing.

“Sorry, my mind is a mess right now. I don’t know what’s happening to me.” Jongin laughed halfheartedly. The other began to panic hearing that. Was he becoming like the others?

“Why? W-What happened?” he stuttered.

“It’s just…” He took a moment to think about how to say it. “Are you even human?” He asked bluntly.

Lay froze at the question, almost sure what it meant and he bit his lower lip, looking down. He didn’t know how to reply to that. He thought Jongin had already figured that out… and that it didn’t matter for him. It seemed it did.

“I-I’m confused… I’m not one to believe in supernatural… other… things like this… but now you appeared and I don’t know anymore.”

“I’m sorry. That’s right, I’m not a human.” Lay said, lifting his eyes.

“Then… what are you?” he asked, approaching even more, examining him, as if he would understand just from that. The other made a step away from Jongin. “Ah… I-I’m just asking.” The boy tried to soothe the situation when he saw Lay was feeling uncomfortable about it. He clumsily ruffled his hair, thinking what he should do now.

“I’m… not even sure there’s a word for what I am in your language. I’m not a vampire, nor a fairy or elf or any other thing… I… don’t know.” He said, looking down again. “Does it… Does it bother you?”

“I don’t think ‘bothering’ is the right word. You don’t… feed on people or something like that, right?” He asked half jokingly, and the shorter was quick to shake his head.

“No.” He didn’t tell him the entire truth though. “Will you leave me?” As he voiced those words out, he looked straight into his eyes, faint hope visible in them. This time, Jongin shook his head.

“No. Unless you want me to. I don’t want to.” He looked back into his eyes and, as that came out of his mouth he realized he really wanted to be next to him… forever. “Never actually.” He whispered.

“Never?” Lay’s eyes widened and came a little closer to Jongin and a smile appeared on his lips, without him even knowing this.

“Just if you’ll let me.”

“That’s out of question. How can I not let you?” His eyes were radiating warmth, and Jongin couldn’t help but come even closer.

“If you don’t hurt humans that means I won’t drop dead if I kiss you, right?” Lay’s eyes widened.

“Kis-?” He started to voice out, but he was interrupted by Jongin’s lips, that touched his softly as the taller boy tilted his head a little. Both of them closed their eyes and a pleasant silence settled as their mouths were locked. A second later, their fingers interlaced and their lips were moving slowly, in unison. Neither of them wanted to break the kiss apart, but Lay was the one to do it, because he was afraid Jongin wouldn’t stop there.

The taller boy bit his lip and looked down, his cheeks pink, sight that made Lay giggle, despite the situation. It seemed like he wouldn’t go any further. He lifted his eyes.

“I love you.” Jongin found himself saying the words which he hadn’t even thought of. He just showed his heart without thinking about it, without preparing, he just told him.

This time, Lay felt it wasn’t an illusion again. He thought he might have been wrong, but… the boy in front of him was looking into his eyes so sincerely and he seemed so nervous that he couldn’t help but believe it was true. When he actually realized what he had been told and the fact that it wasn’t just his imagination, his eyes became wet. As soon as he embraced Jongin tightly, tears began flowing on his cheeks, wetting the other’s shoulder.

“W-What’s wrong?” Jongin asked when he heard his sniffs, then he hugged him back as tight. “Did I… do something wrong?” The other shook his head and spoke between sobs:

“Not at all. I’m happy.” It was the first time he cried of happiness, the first time feeling like that and he wanted to keep Jongin next to him forever if he could. “You have no idea how happy I am.”

“Then do you… return my feelings?” he asked, feeling the body, which was as cold as ice, in his arms. He unknowingly held his breath until he received an answer.

“Yes. Obviously.” The answer came and plastered a bright, relieved smile on Jongin’s face, and he tightened the embrace, wanting to be as close as possible. “But… is it really ok?”

“Of course it’s ok.” his voice resounded, sprinkled with a gentle laugh.

“But I’m not human…”

“I don’t care.”

“Also… I haven’t told you everything… You might want to leave me after I tell you… and I won’t blame you.”

Jongin got a little scared, not scared of Lay, but of what could be so terrible as to make him want to leave him. The fair-skinned boy made a pause before he spoke again.

“I was born to… keep humans away from this place. But it doesn’t really work as you can see.” He chuckled bitterly. “And I have to do that by tempting them and making them believe this place is dangerous, this forest is dangerous…” He made another pause.

“Tempting them? How?...”

Lay broke the hug apart and made a step backwards so he could see the boy better.

“Just how I didn’t succeed with you. Ah, no, I didn’t try to do that. I never do. It just happens. They are attracted to me and I can do nothing about it.” He shrugged. “They think they love me, but that’s not love, they just lose their minds.”

Jongin’s eyes widened at the words.

“That means… mine too… I lo-“

“No! You didn’t, you’re perfectly sane, I can see that.” He smiled sweetly at him. “Right now you only kissed me, didn’t you? They… wouldn’t stop at that.” He let out a sad laugh.

“Ah… I see…”

“Besides, it’s the water too. You drank just a little and nothing happened to you, right?”

“Should something have happened?”

“It’s like a drug, but it had no effect on you. I don’t know why, but you’re special.” The gentle smile returned on Lay’s expression.

“Am I?...”

All of those seemed like a dream or movie for Jongin, but somehow it was reality, and he eventually got used to it. He got used to this even more unusual side of now his boyfriend, even more unusual than he could possibly imagine before. It was all fine, almost too fine and he started to wonder if everything was too simple. However, he didn’t say anything about this, just enjoying every second spent with him, every smile, every giggle, every kiss, ever small touch.

Jongin met him at least once a day, still only at sunrise or sunset because Lay told him that would be the best, for if they were found out by the Moon, they wouldn’t be able be together anymore. They could also meet on moonless nights, but that happened rarely, since Jongin couldn’t sneak out of the house easily, since he was living with his parents.

Slowly, through Jongin, Lay learnt new things about our world, the humans’. He learnt about different things like mobile phones, school, books, movies, music… ordinary things that the taller boy used to talk about with him.

“Humans are pretty amazing, aren’t they? To be able to write hundreds of pages, telling stories, all of them passing through their minds… It’s amazing.” the fair-skinned boy once said when Jongin was talking about a book he’d read.

“Indeed, some of them really are.” the other added. “Speaking of books, how… do you know our language?”

“We had to adapt, didn’t we?” He smiled. “Since humans often come here, we’ve taken in your language.”

“I see. It makes sense. You must have had a lot of time to learn it… By the way, how old are you? You didn’t tell me back then.”

“I don’t know.” He laughed. “I’ve lost count a long time ago.”

“A long time ago…” Jongin repeated the last words. For him, “a long time ago” meant his childhood. He wondered what it meant for his boyfriend though. “How was your childhood, Lay?”

“I don’t remember having any.” he simply said. “I’ve been like this, in this place since as far as I can remember.”

“So you don’t remember being little… That’s… not nice.” he said, earning a laugh from the other boy and he felt him rest his head on his shoulder. Jongin turned his head a little towards him and his cheek touched his chocolate hair, which was soft.

Jongin loved Lay , but he wasn’t greedy for him. He loved him purely. He didn’t come when he knew it could be dangerous because he wanted to see him so badly. Even if he wanted, he didn’t do it. Only… this time it happened because of Lay. This time, he was the one who couldn’t stay away from him.

It was a rainy, cold night, but of course, not for him, since he couldn’t feel the temperature. He knew that somewhere beyond the clouds was his mother, not able to see him now.

_What if I… leave this place for a few minutes?_ He asked himself. It was the first time he thought of something like that. Why now? Why was Jongin so special? He loved him as much as he loved the ones before. Then what happened? He was longing for Jongin. The time spent with him was too little, so he risked. He didn’t know what, maybe everything, but he shoved all of his fear away, gathering his courage and left. The first time in his life, he stepped through the woods and he soon found himself at the edge of the forest, surrounded by darkness. He didn’t feel any different. He looked around, not being used to other environments.

Jongin had described once his house and how to reach it from there, but not for Lay to come there. He just wanted to let him know where he lived, to tell him more about himself.

Lay ventured through the darkness and somehow reached his house. He knew it was his.

_“It’s a small, lovely house in which I grew up with my parents. It has a pretty, red roof, that I’ve always liked. Red is my favorite color. I like to go up there and gaze at the night sky when my parents think I’m asleep._

_Ivy climbs up its brick walls. My room’s windows open to the back yard with soft grass. My house is pretty different from the ones around it. I think the others are just boring, plain white, brown roof…Ours is more colorful…”_

It was easy recognizing it. Lay planned to return when he founded. He now thought that just seeing it was enough. But he saw light inside. Staying hidden, he saw that inside was Jongin, on the ground floor. The rain wasn’t heavy right now, it was pretty gentle, so he hadn’t bothered closing the windows. Lay smiled brightly at his sight. He couldn’t see what he was doing from that distance. The fair-skinned boy entered the yard and approached his window. He stood on his toes to see better. His boyfriend had his back towards him and couldn’t see that he was there. He was in the kitchen and he was washing the dishes,

“Jongin.” Lay whispered and received no answer. “Jongin!” he said a little louder, causing the boy to almost let the plate he was holding slip from his hands. He put it down, carefully, and quickly turned around to see Lay there. He could only see his head, adorned with his beautiful smile he always had when he saw Jongin.

The taller boy was just shocked.

“What are you doing here?” He began to panic. “What if something happens to you?”

“I’m perfectly fine.” he said, the smile not leaving his face.

“But it’s night. And the Moon is up there somewhere!”

“Yeah, but there are clouds, it’s raining, so I guess it’s ok.”

“You are reckless, you know?” Jongin said, more angry than happy.

“Are your parents home?”

“No, I’m alone tonight.” He replied and his brows were furrowed.

“Why are you so grumpy? You don’t want to see me?” Lay frowned too, jokingly, because he knew that wasn’t true.

“I do, but…”

“I want to see your room.” Lay’s cheerfulness returned in a moment.

“B-But… You have to go back.”

“Catch me.”

“What?” Jongin asked as his eyes widened.

Lay went back a few meters, still facing him, then he started running forward. As soon as he reached the window, he grabbed its edge, supporting his body and jumped inside. He lost his balance when his knees touched the edge and he fell towards Jongin, who caught him in a hug. Lay wrapped his arms around his neck and kissed his lips.

Jongin forgot about the anger before and kissed him back softly.

“I’ll show you my room then, but you’ll go back after that, ok?”

“Where is it?” he asked excitedly, advancing towards the kitchen door.

“Aish…” Jongin grabbed his hand and led him upstairs, to his bedroom. It was dark and the scent of the rain came in through the open window. It was pretty chilly, but Jongin didn’t seem to be bothered about it. He turned on the lamp on his desk, which basked the room in a weak, warm light, contrasting with the cold colors of the outside.

Lay looked around. He came closer to his desk, looking at his textbooks, which were there, admiring the simple furniture and those few pictures hung on the cream walls; finally he sat on the bed, wanting to feel its softness, to know what Jongin was feeling when he slept.

“So this is where you live. It’s indeed lovely.” he said, his eyes still roaming around the room as they became rather sad. Also his smile diminished a little.

“Your home is lovely too.”

“That’s how it seems, doesn’t it? But it holds so many bitter memories… I hate that place.”

The taller’s eyes softened as he sat beside his boyfriend, one arm coming around his shoulders. Lay placed his arms around his waist, hugging him tightly.

“Can I get anymore closer to you than I already am?” he asked as he buried his face in the crook of his neck, and Jongin put his other arm around him too.

“Yes, there is a way.” Jongin answered softly, and Lay’s grip tightened.

“Could you… turn off the light? It reminds me of so many things.”

“Of course.” the other said as he stood up and went to do what his boyfriend requested. After that, he returned to the bed. When he sat back down, he was welcomed by Lay’s lips, which touched his gently. The boy dragged Jongin by his shirt over himself as he laid on the soft mattress.

The taller boy’s hands were on both of his sides while their lips were moving slowly. Lay’s fingers were clenched on the other’s shirt as if he wanted him to come even closer. Jongin’s warm hands touched the cold skin underneath him. He felt a relaxing coolness. His eyes were closed and he just let himself drown in Lay’s freshness and coldness.

Jongin’s fingers began exploring the frail body and that was when he realized there was no heartbeat. He got scared at the beginning, but he knew that nothing was wrong with Lay. He was perfectly fine under his warm body. His arms were now around his neck and they were kissing passionately.

When the fair-skinned boy felt pleasure taking over his body and mind, he knew that it was the best feeling in his life. Better than any time before. Now he actually felt love. Sweet moans were escaping their mouths as the rain slowly stopped. The clouds were chased away and the clear sky was revealed.

Every second passing by, the silver light of the now exposed Moon invaded a little more of the small room. She was angry. She knew that he had run away from home. Soon, the silver rays reached the bed and touched the two bodies that were united.

“Ah…” Lay cringed when the light touched him, He felt stings in those places.

“Does it hurt?” the other boy asked, breathing heavily. “I’m so-“

“No. It’s not you…” he whimpered again. “Look.” He turned his head at the direction of the window and Jongin’s eyes widened.

“N-No…”

“It’s fine. It doesn’t hurt.” The usual, sweet smile appeared again on Lay’s expression.

“Are you sure?”

“Very.”

A few minutes later, Jongin was fast asleep as Lay was just pretending to. He was hurting. He was feeling pain in his entire body, almost as if hundreds of needles were pinned in his skin. He struggled and kept silent though, not to wake his boyfriend up or to worry him. He was sleeping so peacefully. His mien seemed content and happy. Through his pain, Lay sketched a smile seeing him.

***

When the morning came after an endless waiting, Lay fell asleep. Jongin fluttered his eyes open and smiled when he saw the boy asleep next to him. His back was turned towards him and he couldn’t see his face. Jongin came closer to him and he placed his arm around him lovingly. Something was strange. He was warm. With every second passing, he turned warmer and warmer, until his body became hot.

As Jongin’s vision was now clear enough, he noticed that his skin was of a warmer color too. It was of a pale pink now. He sit up and shook the boy lightly, while calling his name.

“Lay! Lay, wake up!”

He slowly opened his eyes, then he turned to face Jongin.

“What’s wrong?”

“What’s wrong?! Are you even asking? You’re hot, you’re burning!”

His temperature was so high now, that Jongin could barely touch him. Lay could barely breathe.

“We have to do something…” the taller said quickly, thinking of what could be done. He ran out of his room as fast as he could and he went into the bathroom. He filled the tub with cold water, then he brought Lay there and put him inside. He kneeled beside him, hoping that it could turn his temperature lower.

“Do you feel any effect?”

Lay’s head was resting against the edge of the bathtub, eyes almost closed and mouth open for air. He slowly shook his head. His skin was of a more intense shade of pink now. In a minute, the water in the tub started to turn into steam. Jongin’s eyes widened when he saw that.

“No way… What should I do?... What should I do?” he whispered to himself, biting his lower lip, his brows furrowed. He began to panic even more when he saw that Lay was struggling to breathe. Then it hit him. He took him in his arms, even though the hotness emanated was burning his skin, and he sprang out of the house, running towards the place where they met. Jongin was completely naked, but he didn’t care about someone seeing him, and fortunately no one was outside at that hour to do that.

When he arrived there, he placed Lay in the water of the spring.

“Please, return to yourself… Please…” Jongin whispered. The water here was steaming too. Lay’s eyes had been closed since they left the house. Now they opened. “How do you feel?” the taller asked. His own body was now better thanks to the water, that cooled his skin down.

“I’m… better.” He was still breathing heavily, but it was easier than before.

A smile loomed on Jongin’s face.

“Really? Thanks God. Please, get better.” His eyes were teary.

“Don’t… worry… I am getting better.” Lay returned the smile.

In a few minutes, his body cooled down, and the steam stopped appearing. He could now breathe properly and his strength came back. So Jongin found the right remedy after all. He sighed relieved.

“I’m good now.” Lay smiled brightly. “Thanks to you.”

“Yeah.” He smiled back. “But we have been found out… What’s next?”

“I think… I’ve already received my punishment. Yesterday night. It hurt a lot actually.” He chuckled softly.

“So you lied. I’m sorry…” The boy’s eyes saddened.

“Don’t be. Everything is alright now.” As he said this, Lay stood up.

“You’re… different.” Jongin observed and he stood up too. A chilly gust of wind blew suddenly and both of them shivered. “You have just shivered! And your skin is not white anymore. It’s more pinkish now. Lay, what happened?”

Lay looked down at himself.

“That’s right. I… shivered. It feels cold suddenly.” Then he placed his hand over his chest. “I can feel my heartbeat!” He looked into Jongin’s eyes perplexed.

“What does that mean? It means that you’re…”

“…human.” The boy couldn’t believe what he had just said, couldn’t believed what had just happened. “So that’s what was supposed to happen if I left this place… become human.” His bewildered expression turned into a bright smile. His eyes were wet and his lips were trembling. For the second time in his life, he cried tears of joy.

They hugged each other more tightly than ever, for a longer time than they had ever did. Lay couldn’t stop crying. He was finally free, with the love of his life, the one who was able to love him back. After so much waiting, Jongin came in his life to repay for his sufferings. Lay’s heart was beating and it was beating crazily.

Not long after Lay became human, Jongin finished school and they moved together. They lived together and loved each other until the very last day of their existence. Lay was finally able to live his happy life until the end.


End file.
